Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Seasons of Change
by Maskeraith
Summary: Three unusual pokémon are thrust into a new and changing world. As pokémon learn to coexist with mystery dungeons, an unknown force works behind the scenes, one whose mission could have dire consequences for humans and pokémon alike.
1. Prologue

A soft breeze woke Willow from her sleep. She kept her eyes closed, enjoying the feeling of grass under her body, and sunlight on her back. She stayed like this for a while, just enjoying the outdoors. Eventually she opened her eyes, finding herself in a small woodland clearing, surrounded by forest. The sun was filtering through the leaves above, bringing life to the colourful lilies that populated the area. Willow slowly realised she didn't recognise the area, and couldn't remember how she had ended up there. A creeping feeling of dread washed over her as she tried to recall the last place she'd been, to retrace her steps, and couldn't. She then wracked her brain for any small details about herself, but all she could remember was that her name was Willow. She couldn't remember anything about her life, couldn't remember any events at all, let alone how she ended up where she was. Her memory was completely gone.

_I should take a look around... maybe if I see something familiar my memory will come back_, she thought to herself, trying not to panic. She suddenly felt very vulnerable – she was all alone in a mysterious forest with no idea what to do next. The trees were huge and ominous, much bigger than she'd ever seen. And there was something else... her body felt _wrong_, like it didn't belong to her. Her arms and legs felt weird, and they didn't seem to bend in the right places. She looked down at her hands, and to her shock saw _paws_. She had three fingers ending in sharp points on each of her paws. She tried wiggling her fingers to make sure they belonged to her, and sure enough they responded to her commands. She turned to look at the rest of her body, and realised that she was now quadrupedal, and covered in fur. Her fur was mostly purple, with cream patches on her belly and paws. And she had a _tail. _She swished it around, her eyes following the curled tip.

_ I'm a pokémon_, she thought. _I'm a rattata!_ She stared at herself in disbelief. But she was human! She realised that it wasn't the trees that were big – it was her tiny new body. She was so small!

She untangled her new limbs and scrambled to her feet. She felt her breathing quickening, panic taking hold. She swallowed and and stood still for a moment, getting used to the feel of her new body. She had no idea how to walk as a quadruped, and her joints, especially in her back legs, were very different to what she was used to. She tried to take a step, and promptly tripped over herself, falling in a heap on the floor. She lay still, and felt her eyes welling up with tears.

_No!_

She squeezed her eyes shut and forced the tears back. Crying would get her nowhere. She had to be brave, or she would never find out what had happened to her. She climbed to her feet with newfound determination, and slowly, carefully, took her first step.

_I can do this._

* * *

They groaned, and opened their eyes. They were laying on their side, face pressed against hard rock. It was dark and a little damp, and they could feel a cold wind passing over their body. They could hear rain nearby, and they lifted their head to try and get a better view. As they did, they caught sight of themself in a puddle, and saw the face of an amaura looking back at them.

_I'm an amaura_, they thought, and immediately frowned. _Why did I think that?_

The realisation came to them slowly, and it worried them greatly. _I've lost my memory. I don't remember anything!_ They climbed unsteadily to their feet, still lethargic from having just woken up. They looked around carefully, trying to recall some fact about themself or their location, but their mind was completely empty. They observed that they were in a small cave, dim light filtering in through the entrance, through which they could see rain falling heavily. It appeared to just be one cavern – they could see no tunnels leading deeper into the earth. None of it looked familiar.

"Okay... Okay..." they spoke aloud, taking deep breaths to calm themself. They shut their eyes, thinking. Something bad had happened to them, that much was clear. But what? They took one last deep breath, and opened them again. "Okay. I need to find... someone to talk to. I need to get help. I can do this."

As they reassured themself, they noticed the light from the cave mouth glinting off of an object at their feet. They craned their neck down, curious, and saw a cylindrical metal object resting on the stone. They nudged it with their foot, causing it to roll away from them, and they heard a faint rattling coming from within. They quickly scanned the rest of the cave floor, looking for more strange cylinders, but they found none.

"I guess this belonged to me? It seems so out of place otherwise," they thought aloud to themself. "So how did I carry this? In my mouth?" They leaned down dubiously, and attempted to pick up the silver cylinder with their teeth. This was not a comfortable way to carry something, and it was too big and slippery to hold for long. Maybe it didn't belong to them after all? They glanced around the cavern again, searching for something, anything, that would give them a clue about who they were, or where they'd come from, but this cylinder was the only other thing in the cave, besides scattered rocks and plants.

_This might be a clue about my past_, they thought to themself. _I'll have to come back for it later_. Now that that was decided, they made their way to the cave entrance. Walking felt clumsy, and they wondered if they were still feeling the effects of... whatever it was that had taken away their memory, and transported them to the cave. They managed to stay on their feet all the way to the entrance, and stopped just short of stepping out of the cave. It was raining pretty hard, and they weren't wearing a raincoat, or any clothes for that matter, and they didn't want to catch a chill. They blinked, and shook their head.

_Is it... is that weird to think? Pokémon don't normally wear clothes, do they? And I'm an ice type, so being cold shouldn't be a problem for me. _They felt a shiver run down their spine. They couldn't shake the feeling that there was something there, something important, just below the surface, that they were forgetting. _No_, they thought. _I don't have time to get cold feet. I need to find help as soon as I can._

And with renewed energy, they stepped out into the rain.

* * *

Mary woke up suddenly, jumping to her feet in a panic. She stood for a moment, her heart racing, until she realised she wasn't where she had been before falling unconscious. Instead, she found herself standing at the crest of a sand dune, the sun's rays beating down on her from directly overhead. She squinted, raising her hand to block out the sun's rays...

"Ah."

That was when she realised it was not just her location that had changed. Instead of a human hand, she was looking at a sharp, steel blade, protruding from a red wrist. She raised the blade that had replaced her other hand and tapped her arm, producing an unmistakable clink of metal on metal. She looked down at her chest, and saw four more blades sticking out of her.

_I'm a pawniard_, she thought to herself.

Having established the new state of her body, she turned her attention to her location. Sand dunes sprawled across the environment, as far as she could see. The only desert she knew was on Route 228, and this was nothing like that... was she not in Sinnoh any more? She turned around, slightly unsteady on the loose sand, and found herself facing a town.

It was some distance away and a little hard to make out, but the town appeared to be carved out of a mesa, built upon solid brown rock. She could make out shades of green, which she assumed to be plants. The town had two rivers of sand flowing through it, with a bridge over each. There was a cobblestone pathway leading out of the town and into the desert. As she observed this entrance, she noticed a figure emerging from the town. It was a buneary, carrying a basket filled with berries. She waited, expecting a human to follow, but no one else emerged from the town. The buneary was alone.

_Could this be it?,_ she thought. _Is this... the world of pokémon?_

She sat down in a heap on the sand, watching the buneary happily make its way out of town. This was a lot to take in, and she was struggling to figure out what her next move should be. She'd never expected things to come this far – she had a lot of work to do. _But if I'm here... _

_ Maybe everyone else ended up here too!_

Then that would be her first objective: to figure out what had happened to everyone else, and find them. She'd work the rest out from there-

"Aaiiieee!"

She jumped to her feet, searching frantically for the source of the scream. It didn't take her long: the buneary had been ambushed by two machop at the foot of her sand dune. They must have been hiding in the sand, just out of sight.

"Hand over the basket and nobody has to get hurt," the first machop ordered coldly. The buneary was shaking, clearly terrified, but held the basket away from her attackers and took a step backwards. She shook her head wordlessly. The second machop darted forward and grabbed the buneary's arm, growling.

"Hey!" Mary shouted. She was surprised – partly because she hadn't expected herself to say anything, partly because _the pokémon were talking_, but mainly because another voice had shouted "Hey!" at the exact same time as her. A buizel had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and was standing on the sand dune directly to her left. He was looking back at her, just as surprised as she was. Then he grinned, and turned his attention back to the machop, who had paused their attack on the buneary.

"Sorry Machop, but it looks like you two will be losing even harder than I expected!" the buizel shouted confidently. Then he was away, charging towards the machop with blinding speed, shrouded in water. Mary hesitated for a split second – she had no idea how to battle, and if she was remembering her type matchups correctly she was at a _severe_ disadvantage. But then she noticed the buneary, staring at her with a mixture of fear and hope, and swung her arms, causing her blades to unsheathe with a satisfying _shink_. She smiled, and charged after the buizel, into battle.


	2. Lily

**Willow**

* * *

Willow had started to get the hang of moving in her new body, and had been pacing around the clearing for a little while now. She was reluctant to leave – the flowery clearing felt safe to her, whereas the forest beyond was ominous and unknown.

_One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four._

She still had to think about walking, about which order to move her legs. Her new body felt strange and uncomfortable. She felt exposed and yet protected by her layer of fluffy fur, and controlling her tail was tricky, and wasn't coming naturally to her.

_One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four._

She knew she had to leave eventually. She just wished she had at least some idea of where she was, but she knew nothing! Pacing hadn't helped her remember what had caused her to wake up here, with the body of a rattata. It was frightening.

_One, two, three, four. One, two, three..._

She froze. The bushes lining the outside of the clearing were rustling in front of her. She stood, stock still, unable to look away. Then two red points of light appeared among the leaves, starting straight at her.

Willow yelped, and the shock made her fall to the ground. She heard a giggle, and watched as a mawile pushed its way through the undergrowth, emerging into the clearing. It didn't come any further, simply stopping and looking at her curiously, her head slightly tilted.

Willow looked back at the pokémon, reflexively cocking her head too. She knew that mawile had cute appearances, and this mawile _was_ cute. But that cuteness was a trap, to lure prey close. Willow also knew that mawile had huge, dangerous jaws made of steel horn on the backs of their heads. Was this mawile trying to lure her in to eat her?

Willow shivered, and felt her pulse increasing. If that was the case, she was in serious trouble. She could barely walk, let alone run, to make an escape. Then she had a sudden thought. _Who had giggled?_

"Hey, is anyone out there?" she shouted, scrambling to her feet. She was wary of provoking the mawile, but she couldn't think of anything better to do. She watched the mawile, heart in her mouth, to see if it would attack, but something much more unexpected happened instead.

"Uh, I'm right here?" the mawile said, giving a small wave. Willow yelped and fell over again. The mawile had spoken to her, and she had understood! She heard it – no, _her_ – laughing, and realised it had been the mawile giggling the first time too. She watched the mawile approach her. She was _tall –_ easily double Willow's height. Willow realised again just how small she was in her new form. The mawile stopped next to her.

"Are you hurt? How come you keep falling over?" the mawile said, looking down at her. Willow didn't know what she could say without sounding stupid. She figured her best bet was to try and find a human to talk to, or at least to communicate with, so she asked:

"Umm... Do you have a trainer?"

The mawile cocked her head to one side and put her hands on her hips. "Trainer? Like a human?" Willow nodded, and the mawile folded her arms. "Is this some kind of prank? Who put you up to this?"

"Wha-" Willow gulped. Had she said something strange? "Er, sorry if I offended you. I just wanted to see a human. Do you know where I could find one?"

The mawile shook her head. "Nice try Rattata, but everyone knows there are no humans in this world. You should try to come up with a trick that isn't so obvious next time!"

Willow was stunned into silence. She tried to think of something to say, but her mind was drawing a complete blank. No humans? So there was no one for her to talk to. And what did this mawile mean when she said 'this world'? There was no way that she had been transported to a whole other _world_... was there? Her thoughts were broken by a three fingered hand poking her in the nose.

"Are you just going to lie there all day? I don't know how you found this place but it's where I come to be by myself, so if you're done, could you please leave?" she said, tapping her foot on the floor. Willow started to panic. Leave? Where could she go? She had no idea where she was! She scrambled to her feet once again, frantically trying to think of something to say to continue the conversation. She took a deep breath, swallowing down the panic rising in her chest. She knew she had to stay calm, that panicking would get her nowhere. Right now, this mawile was the only person... no, _pokémon_, who might be able to help her, so she had to say something.

"I'm sorry!" she said again, "I promise this isn't a prank, I just woke up here! I was trying to learn how to walk!"

The mawile frowned. "What do you mean, learn how to walk? You're clearly not a young rattata, you should know that by now."

"I..." Willow shook her head. "I'm really sorry to bother you, but I need some help. Can I explain what's happened to me from the start?"

"Is it a long story?" the mawile asked. She still looked sceptical. Willow looked at the ground, ashamed. She didn't want to put her through any trouble, but she was her only hope right now.

"Not long, just... a little unbelievable. Sorry."

"Don't be sorry," she said. Willow looked up, and saw real concern on her face. "If you have a genuine problem, I'll gladly listen, and try to help you in any way I can, no matter how crazy it sounds. Once I find a partner, I'm planning on joining the Society, you know!" she said proudly. Willow had no idea what this 'Society' was, but she was grateful this mawile was willing to help.

"Okay," Willow said, as the mawile sat down in front of her. Willow stood awkwardly, not trusting herself to sit down with her without somehow messing it up in her rattata body. "Like I said, this is going to sound really unbelievable, but I promise it's the truth. I'm..." Willow swallowed. Surely there was no way she would believe her? She took a deep breath, and continued.

"I'm actually a human," she said. "I woke up like this earlier, with no memories of my past except that I was a human." She looked at the mawile, expecting the worst, but she she just looked confused.

"A human? You look like a perfectly normal rattata to me. Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," said Willow, holding her breath. Was she going to accept her story? She watched her fold her arms and think for a while, until she eventually replied.

"Alright. Go on, what else?" she prompted.

"Wait, you really believe me?" Willow asked, hardly daring to believe it herself.

"Well, it adds up," the mawile said thoughtfully. "No one knows about this clearing but me, so to start with you're somewhere you shouldn't be. The way you were pacing around, concentrating... Well, if this isn't your original body, then that explains that. And your weird questions make sense as well."

Willow realised the Mawile must have been watching her for some time. She almost wanted to say something about it, but the mawile was still talking.

"So the question is, what do we do with you?" she paused for a moment, and then revised her question: "Actually, I guess the question is what do _you_ want to do?"

"Wait, me?" Willow said, starting to feel light headed. She felt very out of her depth.

"Yeah, you," replied the mawile, smiling encouragingly. "The way I see it is this: You've turned up here, a pokémon who's actually a human, with no memories. If I was in your situation, I would want answers. Unfortunately, I don't have a clue where to start with that." She stood up. "So I think the only thing to do here is what you want to do. You could ask around, but a lot of people might think you're crazy. I guess I could take you back to Baram Town and we could look for a job for you and a place for you to live, for now."

Willow was struggling to keep up with all the information. She would have to get a job? She realised that she might be in this situation for a long time, and her heart sank. This body wasn't hers, and she wasn't sure she wanted to get used to it. The mawile was definitely right about something though – she _did_ want to find out how she'd ended up in this situation.

"Okay, that sounds good," she said meekly. "I think I do want to find out about my past, but starting small sounds like the smart thing to do. What kind of jobs do pokémon do?"

"Umm..." she seemed to falter a bit. She crossed her arms again. "Well, you could try Café Connection? When I think about it, none of the jobs you could get around Baram Town would really get you to places beyond the town, so you wouldn't get any closer to discovering your past. Hmm..." she remained deep in thought for a moment, and then she spoke again, more slowly this time.

"This is a bit of a long shot, but... the only job I can think of that will get you out of town would be if you joined the Society, but you need a partner to join... And, uh, do you remember earlier I mentioned I was looking for a partner? If we form a team together, I'm sure there would be many opportunities to look for stuff about your past."

She looked at her hopefully. "What do you say?"

Willow realised she was holding her breath. Things seemed to be moving at lightning speed. She had woken up as a pokémon less than an hour ago, and already she was being invited to form some kind of team with another pokémon she'd only just met. She still felt very light headed, but when she thought about it, the mawile's request seemed like the best option for her right now. It meant she could stick with the one pokémon she could be sure believed her story, and if what she said about this society was true, she would have opportunities to try and figure out who she was, and where she'd come from. Still, there was something she had to ask. She let out the huge sigh she'd been holding in, and asked:

"Are you sure you'd want me on your team? I mean, you know what I am, so you know that I have no idea how anything works in this world... or how to be a pokémon... or anything."

"You may have a point, but..." the mawile looked her in the eye, smiling. "Who wouldn't want a human partner? This is a once in a lifetime opportunity! And besides, I've been looking for a partner for a long time now, but not many pokémon are interested in joining the Society these days. Everyone I know says it's a waste of time, what with the world being in such a peaceful state... But I think there's always someone who needs help, and I want to help as many pokémon as I can! I don't know if you feel the same way, but you don't seem like a bad pokémon. So... what do you say?"

"I accept," Willow said, quicker than she expected herself to. She was surprised at this, but continued, "Thank you so much for all of this, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come."

"Hey, no problem!" she said. "Did you get the hang of walking yet?"

"Kind of," Willow smiled. "My name's Willow, by the way."

"Willow, huh?" the mawile smiled. "Like the tree. That's a pretty nickname."

"Nickname? What do you mean? That's just... my name," said Willow, confused.

"It's probably different in the human world. Let me explain," said the mawile, "In this world, pokémon just go by their species name, so my name would be Mawile. Some pokémon have a nickname that they only tell their friends, so for you that would be Willow. You shouldn't really ask a pokémon for their nickname, they'll tell you if they're comfortable doing it. I don't have a nickname, so you can just call me Mawile."

Willow nodded, taking it all in. "So I shouldn't just go telling everyone my name is Willow, that would be weird?"

"That would be a little forward, yeah," Mawile laughed. Willow had another question:

"Is having a nickname an uncommon thing? Why don't you have a nickname?"

"I was an only child and my parents never came up with one, and I just never really came up with one myself either."

"Oh," said Willow, frowning. "Mawile feels a bit impersonal to me, like if I called someone 'Human' back in my world." She looked around for inspiration. "Can I call you Lily? Like the flowers in this clearing."

"Huh?" said Mawile, folding her arms. For a second, Willow was worried she'd offended her. Maybe suggesting nicknames was something you shouldn't do? But all she said was, "How do you know the names of these flowers?"

Willow was a bit taken aback, but answered, "I'm not sure. I guess it's just something I know. I think it's just events I lost, not knowledge."

"That's good to know," the mawile replied. Then she smiled, and said "Lily. I like it, I think it suits me. Just out of interest, are all humans nicknamed after plants?"

"Not all of us, no," said Willow, smiling weakly. Mawile, newly nicknamed Lily, laughed.

"Well, Willow, let's see if we can get back to Baram town before dark!"

Lily led the way into the forest as Willow followed, still having to concentrate to not trip over herself. She felt relief welling up inside her. She hadn't admitted it to herself until that moment, but she had been really, _really_ afraid. She had so nearly been abandoned in a world she knew nothing about, and she felt so lucky to not only have a guide, but a guide who believed her story. She was still very anxious about her future, but at least she had someone to fall back on, to ask for help, and to talk to when things might get tough.

She was not alone.

_One, two, three four. One, two, three, four. _

_One, two, three, four..._


	3. Taking a Chance

**Amaura**

* * *

The amaura found themself standing atop a grey, rocky cliffside. The wind howled around them at high speeds, and may have been dangerous for some, but not for the sturdy stance of an amaura like them. The rain was a different story – it made the rocks slippery and treacherous. They would have to watch out for that.

But... where to go? It was already dark, and they could barely make out anything through the rain. They crept slowly towards the cliff edge, hoping to get a better view and find something, anything, to work towards. They crouched down, craning their neck against the howling wind, and looked over the edge.

Pinpricks of light shone faintly from the ground below. They could make out little else, but they were sure that it was some kind of settlement.

"Down the cliff it is, then..." they murmured to themself. But how were they going to get down? The cliff was steep, jagged and dangerous. They were heavy, and one misstep would send them tumbling into the sharp rocks.

They looked around for some kind of path, a mountain trail maybe, but could see none. The wind was screaming in their ear to return to the safety of the cave, to just wait out the storm. But the amaura was determined.

"I'm... part rock type. I can create my own path," they said to themself. This was true, but...

They couldn't remember how! They'd forgotten how to use their powers!

"Then I'll just remember. It's part of who I am, right? So if I just think really hard, and try things, I'll work it out. I'm sure of it."

The wind swept their words away as they started to concentrate on the rocky cliffside. They carefully made their way around the perimeter of the cliffside they were stuck on, looking for a good place to start. Through the rain they eventually spotted another flat platform, some distance below. It was small, and littered with dangerous looking rocks. Much too risky to try and climb to. Moving their body still felt clumsy, and they didn't want to think about what might happen if they slipped.

They began to concentrate, blocking out the harsh sounds of the wind and rain around them. They envisioned a pathway, carved out of the rock, leading from their position to the plateau. They focused fully on this pathway, trying to make something happen, to activate their powers. But the strong rock stayed exactly as it was.

Minutes passed, and still nothing happened. The amaura turned away, their feet landing heavily in frustration. With each stomp, they felt the ground shake slightly...

"Oh!"

The amaura turned back to the plateau, envisioning the pathway once more. They raised their foot high, and brought it crashing to the ground.

The effect was spectacular. Small cracks blossomed from where their foot hit the ground, travelling down towards the plateau. Where they had imagined the pathway, the cracks widened significantly, breaking the rock into large pieces which tumbled noisily down the side of the cliff. They watched in awe as the mountain reshaped itself before their very eyes into a way down – not as perfect as it had looked in their head, but it would do the job.

They laughed, hardly believing what they had just done. Then lightning flashed across the sky and thunder clapped loudly, making them jump. The storm was worsening.

"No time to wait around," they said to themself. They cautiously descended the pathway they'd created. "I'd better get a move on!"

* * *

They reached the bottom of the cliff in this way, creating more pathway whenever it ran out. As they'd gotten closer and closer to the ground, they had gotten a clearer view of the town – the lights _had_ been a town – below them. It was situated next to the cliffside, and everything seemed to be made out of the same grey rock. The town was surrounded by a wall, where it was not already bordered by the cliff. Tall girders towered over the town, and the pinpricks of light were coming from both windows and metal street lamps. They had seen the way in – a tunnel through the wall, flanked by two huge statues they couldn't quite make out.

The town was their best shot at shelter and information, but they were a little nervous. It was completely unfamiliar to them, and they were worried about getting lost. What if dangerous people lived there?

They swallowed their fear, and approached the gate. Then they realised with a start that what they thought had been enormous statues were actually two copperajah. Their trunks moved to block the entrance as the amaura stepped into view.

"Greetings, Amaura!" the one on the left said with a slow, booming voice. "As this is your first visit, we would like to take the time to welcome you to Noe Town. From where do you come, and why?"

"Oh, err, thank you! Well..." the amaura stuttered. The huge pokémon talking to them had caught them completely off guard, but they quickly recovered. "I come from... those cliffs, and I am just here to find shelter from this storm."

"The cliffs, eh?" the one on the right replied in the same slow, booming voice. "Very well. If you are here to seek shelter from the elements, might I humbly suggest Café Connection? Simply go straight once you enter town, across the bridge, and down the stairs. The café is in the second plaza, and is unmissable."

With that the copperajah moved their heavy trunks away from the entrance. "Enjoy your visit!" they said simultaneously.

"Thank you!" the amaura replied, glad to be guided in the right direction.

"You are most welcome," the copperajah on the left replied. "Now go, Amaura. The storm worsens."

The amaura didn't have to be told twice. They stepped through the entrance into the gloomy town. Everything was carved out of the same grey stone as the cliffside, with metal plates and rivets helping to hold things together. Everything was very angular, and it felt a little oppressive. They went over the copperajah's directions under their breath: "Go straight... across the bridge, down the stairs."

It was as simple as he'd made it sound. The amaura met no one out on the streets. "Because of the storm, no doubt," they said to themself.

The walk to the café was short, and the amaura stepped nervously through the entrance. The café had a pleasant atmosphere, even in the intense storm. The floor had warm purple rugs, placed on top of a cool blue tiled floor. Potted plants lined the walls, and there were stone tables and stools set out around the room. A few pokémon were scattered among the tables – a golett and a goodra, chatting away; a lone pachirisu, seemingly lost in a book; a crustle slowly eating a bowl of mixed berries. Most of the tables were empty. _Most likely due to how late it is, and the storm, _the amaura decided. In the centre of the large room was the bar, where a kangaskhan stood, busily polishing a glass. The amaura was about to walk up to the counter when a terrible thought flashed into their mind.

_I have no money!_

They felt their heart sink. Of course, they'd need money to pay for anything the café had to offer, including a room! They rocked back and forth, not sure what to do and feeling increasingly self-conscious. Their first instinct was to turn and leave, but facing the storm alone in a town they didn't know seemed scary and dangerous. Finally, they made up their mind. Looking around at the customers again, they chose the pachirisu and walked to her table.

The pachirisu was so engrossed in her book that she didn't notice the amaura at first.

"Err... excuse me," whispered the amaura. The pachirisu jumped, snapping her book shut suddenly.

"Oh!" she said, looking up at them. She looked extremely nervous. "H- Hello! Can I help you?"

"I'm really sorry to bother you!" The amaura began to explain. "This is extremely embarrassing, but I don't have any money. I was wondering if... Can I sit with you and wait out the storm? I don't know if the kangaskhan would let me sit on my own without buying anything..."

The pachirisu looked very flustered. The amaura elaborated: "We don't have to talk or anything! You can just keep reading your book..."

The pachirisu continued clutching her book, staring at it intently. The amaura was starting to worry that they'd chosen the wrong pokémon. _Maybe I should have spoken to the crustle..._

"Okay." Her voice was quiet, and she was still looking at her book. "Would... Would you like me to get you something to drink?"

"Thank you!" said the amaura, relieved. "That's okay, I don't want to overstep! I just want to stay out of the storm while I figure out my next move."

The pachirisu placed her book on the table, and made awkward eye contact. "What do you mean? A- Are you okay?"

The amaura wanted to take a seat, but didn't know how. The table was an awkward size for them, a little too small, but at the same time a little too big for the pachirisu. "It's a bit of a strange story. I woke up in a cave on the cliffs not too long ago, and made my way to this town. The copperajah at the gate told me to come here, but..."

The pachirisu rolled her eyes. "Even though you're clearly not carrying anything, so wouldn't have any money. That sounds like them."

The amaura laughed, glad that the pachirisu seemed less nervous now. The pachirisu smiled, and continued to talk. "What's the last thing you remember before waking up? Do you need help getting home?"

The amaura quickly stopped laughing. "I... I don't remember anything. Anything at all. Not where I came from, not how I ended up in the cave, not even my name."

"R- Really?" said the pachirisu, shocked. The amaura nodded sadly. They watched as the pachirisu looked down at her book again. She seemed nervous again, and the amaura wondered if she believed them. They felt bad about bothering the girl, but it was the only thing they could think to do.

After a long pause, the pachirisu spoke again, slowly, without looking up from her book. "Would you... If you wanted to, you could come and stay at my place tonight?"

The amaura was stunned. "Are you sure? I don't want to intrude!"

The pachirisu looked down, wringing her hands nervously. "I would feel terrible if I left you now, it's so late and this storm is crazy... I wouldn't be able to stop thinking about you..."

The amaura didn't know what to say. Then they heard the pachirisu laugh.

"Your sails look so pretty!" she said, gazing at them in wonder. With a start, the amaura realised their sails were glowing a soft yellow. _That's right,_ they thought. _My sails change colour with my emotions._

"I noticed they've been grey up until now. I'm glad I could make you happy!" the pachirisu smiled. "I... I'm usually too nervous to help strangers. I always want to but I just get nervous and... worried I'll make things worse or they won't want my help or something. But! Not this time. I want to help you!"

"I think that's understandable!" the amaura replied. "It takes courage to help a stranger. I'm very glad you decided to help me!"

The pachirisu laughed, and looked into the amaura's eyes. "You can call me Pachi. Should I call you Amaura? You said you forgot your nickname, so..."

The amaura thought for a moment. "Well... maybe you could help me come up with a new nickname?"

"Me?!" Pachi seemed flustered again. "Are you sure? I'm not very good with nicknames, as you can probably tell from mine..."

"Your nickname is great! It's cute!" said the amaura, smiling as Pachi let out a short giggle. "I definitely want your help!"

Pachi looked nervous. "Can I have some inspiration?"

"Okay. Well..." The amaura thought for a second. "My pronouns are they them. I don't really remember much about myself, so... maybe just a name related to Amaura, like how yours is related to pachirisu?"

"Oh!" Pachi giggled. "You do remember something after all, your pronouns!"

"Huh," said the Amaura thoughtfully. "You're right. I guess stuff like that isn't easily forgotten."

"Mhm! I- I'm actually trans as well," she replied, slightly awkwardly. "Alright! Names. Umm..." she waved her arms around, looking for inspiration. "Amaura... Maura... Dora, Nora, Sora..."

"Nora," the amaura repeated. "That feels right, somehow."

"What? Really?!" Pachi exclaimed. "That was quick, are... are you sure? All I did was say words that rhyme with Amaura..."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Nora said confidently. "It definitely feels right."

"Okay, Nora!" replied Pachi happily. She stood up, tucking her book into the bag she had left on the seat next to her. "I think we should get going right away, before the storm gets any worse."

"Thanks again for this, you've really saved me," Nora reiterated, their sails flashing yellow. Pachi simply smiled.

"Like I said, I'm usually too nervous to help strangers, but..." She hopped out of her seat and stood next to Nora. Nora towered over their new friend, who looked up at them, smiling.

"I don't know what made me pluck up the courage this time, but I guess I just decided to take a chance on you. You can stay at my place tonight, then tomorrow we'll try and figure out the place that can be _yours_."

Pachi looked forward now, and started moving towards the exit. "And maybe we can even stay friends afterwards?"

Nora's sails shone with yellow happiness. They couldn't believe how well things had turned out. Earlier they'd been just about ready to climb back up to the cave they'd woken up in – at least they'd be protected from the storm there. But they'd taken a chance on the pachirisu, and Pachi had taken a chance on them in return. Then the howling storm interrupted their thoughts as Pachi swung open the door. They looked at each other.

"Let's hurry," Pachi said. Nora nodded, and together they stepped into the storm.


	4. Bounty Hunters

**Mary**

* * *

Mary hurtled down the side of the sand dune, her feet hardly touching the sand. It was all she could do to stay on her feet – she was still getting a feel for her new body, but, as new as it was, she could tell that it was built for battle. She felt adrenaline pounding in her head. She saw the buizel collide with the machop furthest away in a perfect aqua jet, knocking him back. She was sure he could handle it, so she turned her attention to the other machop. The machop was already in a fighting stance, and was smirking at her confidently.

_And he has good reason to be confident_, Mary thought grimly. He was bigger than her, and a fighting type, which gave him an extreme advantage over a steel and dark type like her. Not to mention, this was her first time even battling as a pawniard. She knew that she should be capable of some powerful moves, but there was no way she was going to be able to work out how to use them in time. She would just have to trust her blades, and herself.

As she drew close to the machop, she saw him draw his arm back for a punch. She had expected this – she deliberately fell backwards onto the ground, and let her momentum and the slippery sand carry her under the swing. She swung her blade as she passed her opponent, catching him in the leg. She heard him cry out in pain, and smiled with satisfaction. She dug her other blade into the sand, using it as an anchor, spinning to face her opponent once more.

"One good punch is all it'll take, Pawniard," goaded the machop. Mary didn't hear him. She was fully focussed on the battle. She didn't approach, she knew she needed to avoid getting hit at all costs. The machop cracked his knuckles, and charged at her with a battle cry. She watched his movements closely, searching for an opening. She saw it, she raised her blade...

Instinctively she jumped to the side as the machop's fist whistled past her head. She had missed her opening, but she was unharmed. She knew it was okay – she had backup. Even if she couldn't land another attack, once her ally had defeated the first machop the battle would be over. She just had to keep her own machop busy for long enough.

"Coward!" spat the machop. He attacked fast, aiming for Mary's face. She raised her blades to block-

Almost too late she realised it was a feint, and the real punch was coming for her stomach. She swung her blades down with as much power as she could muster, deflecting his fist at the last second. The power of the attack reverberated through her arms, and she knew that one hit would truly finish her off. She felt her heart pounding in her chest at how close she had come to defeat. _Concentrate! You can do this!_

The machop didn't let up his assault. Mary concentrated solely on dodging and deflecting his endless punches. She dodged and weaved and blocked and defended, and she was good at it, but she knew she couldn't keep it up forever. _Hurry, Buizel_, she thought.

Then the machop jumped away and to the side. She turned, making sure she stayed facing her enemy. She saw another figure out of the corner of her eye and nearly panicked before she realised it was just the buneary.

"I hate cowards," the machop growled. "The only thing cowards deserve is a taste of their own medicine!"

Then the machop wound up another punch, but Mary was startled to see he wasn't aiming at her.

"No!"

Mary felt herself sprinting, sprinting towards the buneary. She felt herself dive in between her and the machop. And then she felt the agonizing impact of his fist.

"Pawniard!"

She was faintly aware of the buizel shouting at her. Her vision was clouding, but she could still just about make out the look of horror on the buneary's face. Then her vision went completely black, and she stopped feeling anything at all.

* * *

"I think she's waking up... Do you have any oran berries in that basket?"

Mary groaned as her eyes flickered open. She could see the silhouette of a buizel, blocking out the sun.

"Here, eat this. It'll make you feel better in no time!"

She became aware of the buizel shoving a berry at her face. She opened her mouth and took a bite.

"Whoa. Right out of my hand, huh? I guess you don't have... fingers..."

She ignored him. She took another bite, and sure enough she felt her strength returning in waves.

She was lying on her back in the sand. Where was she? She was in a fight...

_She was in a fight!_

"Machop... the buneary..." She struggled into a sitting position, looking around

"Hey, hey, hey, what do you take me for? Take it easy, okay? I took care of them, you don't have to worry," the buizel said, putting his hands on her shoulders, stopping her from moving. "I took care of it okay? And Buneary is fine, thanks to you!"

Mary finally noticed the buneary, who was standing behind the buizel nervously. The buizel stepped aside, and the buneary stepped forward. She bowed deeply.

"Th- Thank you _so much_ for protecting me, Pawniard!" she said gratefully. "I'll never forget this, I promise!"

Mary looked off to the side awkwardly. "I hardly protected you. All I did was get myself knocked out. If I was alone you'd be in serious trouble."

The buneary looked flustered. She seemed like she wanted to say more, but the buizel cut in.

"Honestly, it's really my fault," he said pleasantly, absentmindedly rubbing the back of his neck. "When I saw you pick a fight with a machop, Pawniard, I assumed you knew what you were doing. I should have been paying more attention, helped you out, you know?"

"Okay, then it's your fault," Mary said dryly.

"Wha-" the buizel looked taken aback. "Hey, come on... There's a fine line between bravery and stupidity, and I didn't want to assume you were stupid..."

Mary laughed. "You have a point," she admitted. "Thank you for not thinking I was stupid, even though I absolutely, one hundred percent was."

The buizel laughed too, locking his fingers behind his head. "But hey, it all worked out, right?"

Mary climbed to her feet. She still felt achy, but the oran berry was working its magic. She surveyed the scene, and noticed the two machop laying in the sand a distance away, out cold. Their mouths were loosely gagged with green fabric, but other than that they weren't bound at all.

"Will they wake up soon?" she asked the buizel.

"Nope! Those scarves are infused with sleep powder. They'll stay sleeping as long as they wear those," he explained. He walked over to them. "Been looking for these guys for some time now," he mused.

"Do you do this for a living?" asked Mary.

"Mhm. I'm an official bounty hunter," he said, puffing out his chest proudly. "The nickname's Cascade, but my good friends call me Cassy. That means you can call me Cassy," he winked.

"I'm..." Mary thought frantically. "Sharp." She didn't want to give out her real name. Besides, 'Mary' probably sounded like a very strange name in this world. The best thing to do, she decided, was to try and blend in with the world. She would pretend she had always lived here, to draw less attention to herself. _Until I have a better grasp of the situation, it's better to be safe than sorry._

"Saved by bounty hunters... so cool..." the buneary said dreamily. Mary had almost forgotten that she was there.

"Actually, I'm the only bounty hunter here," corrected Cassy. "Sharp here isn't part of the guild. Yet."

"Yet?" queried Mary.

"You HAVE to join, Sharp! You're so brave and cool and pretty and you'd make a perfect bounty hunter..." The buneary stopped suddenly, eyes widening. "I mean... you would be a great bounty hunter!" she turned away quickly.

Mary looked down at her blades. A body made for battle... She wasn't sure how this world worked, but if she needed a job, this would be perfect. She could hone her skills in battle, and travel to lots of places on hunts. She looked up at Cassy.

"Is it hard to join?"

"Well, kind of," he laughed. Mary cringed. _That might have been a stupid question._

"It's pretty tough to start a team. But, pre-existing teams can sort of just add members as they like. We're trusted to choose our members well. Sooooo..."

Cassy grinned. "Want to join my team?"

Mary blinked. "Shouldn't you consult with the rest of your team first?"

Cassy's grin widened. "I _am_ the team. I'm pretty strong, you know! But, I've been wanting to take on some tougher criminals recently, and they don't let you take the toughest missions solo."

"Then it's settled," said Mary, before he could change his mind. She wasn't sure what this buizel was thinking, adding a total stranger to his team so readily, but she wasn't going to miss a golden opportunity like this.

"Of course it's settled. Who could turn down an offer like that?" Cassy smirked. He turned to the buneary. "Think you can take it from here, or do you want escorting?"

"I- I'll be okay!" she said quickly. "It's really not far to my ma's house from here."

"Glad to hear, glad to hear," Cassy said, nodding approvingly. "Alright, Sharp, pick a machop. We have to lug these guys back to HQ."

Mary stared at the machop. "This guy's a lot bigger than me."

Cassy just shrugged. "I can call for backup if you want, but I think we can manage."

Mary nodded. She started towards the machop closest to her.

"Umm! Sharp!"

Mary stopped, and turned back to face the buneary.

"You're definitely brave, okay! You really did protect me, and I really won't ever forget it!" she said quickly.

"Thank you," Mary replied simply. She watched as the buneary bowed once more, and then turned and continued on her path, picking up her basket as she left. She felt a hand pat her on the back.

"Come on Sharp, Sahra Town is super close. We'll get these two back to HQ in no time!" Cassy said encouragingly.

Mary watched the buneary for a moment longer. She realised she was worried about her, but Cassy thought it was okay, and she was sure he was right. Finally, she turned back to the machop. All she had to do now was carry him back to town.

_...I miss having hands._


End file.
